Biochar Fertilization Significantly Increases Nutrient Levels in Plants and Soil but Has No Effect on Biomass of Pinus massoniana (Lamb.) and Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook Saplings During the First Growing Season

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that biochar fertilization has profound effects on plant and fine root growth, but there is a lack of studies on how changes in plant and soil stoichiometry by biochar fertilization influence plant growth and root morphology. We investigated the effects of biochar fertilization on biomass, root morphology, plant nutrient concentrations, and the stoichiometry of plants and soil in a greenhouse experiment with Pinus massoniana (Lamb.) (PM) and Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook. (CL) throughout the 2017 growing season immediately following biochar fertilization application. Four levels of biochar treatment were used, i.e., addition rates of 0 (control), 5 (low biochar), 10 (medium biochar), and 20 t ha−1 (high biochar). Biochar fertilization had no effect on biomass, fine root length, or fine root surface area. Biochar treatment, however, had significant effects on nutrient levels and their stoichiometry in both plants and soil. Detrended correspondence analysis suggested that increases in soil C:N, soil C:P, and soil N:P were associated with increases in plant nutrient levels, especially P concentration. Our results indicate that biochar fertilization prioritizes enhancing plant and soil nutrients over increasing height and diameter in the first growing season. A higher biochar fertilization dosage has a major influence on root morphology for PM and on P concentrations in the plant and soil for CL, probably through different growth characteristics and nutrient resorption rates. Further studies, particularly those considering long-term effects, are necessary before general recommendations regarding biochar application should be given.

Pyrogenic Carbon Increases Pitch Pine Seedling Growth, Soil Moisture Retention, and Photosynthetic Intrinsic Water Use Efficiency in the Field

“…Notably, prescribed fire (Foereid et al, 2015;Michelotti and Meisel, 2015) produces highly reactive and highly sorbent material that enrich forest soils (Thomas and Gale, 2015;Mitchell et al, 2016). However, less understood are anthropogenic PyC impacts on forest soil properties and tree growth (Ge et al, 2019), especially juvenile trees. Some studies focus on PyC and tree germination processes (McElligott, 2011;Ledig et al, 2015, but few if any describe post-germination impacts and none on seedling growth of a particular species pitch pine.…”

Mixture Compound Fertilizer and Super Absorbent Polymer Application Significantly Promoted Growth and Increased Nutrient Levels in Pinus massoniana Seedlings and Soil in Seriously Eroded Degradation Region of Southern China

“…Our study concluded that the N:P ratio in the soil was much lower than that in the P. massoniana plantation studied by Lei et al (2017) , which indicated that although there were more P elements given to the soil by the environment, its effectiveness was low. In addition, this study showed that the N:P ratio in the leaves, stems, and roots was slightly less than 14 in all groups, indicating that the growth of P. massoniana was limited by the N element to some extent ( Ge et al, 2019 ). Moreover, the results of the comprehensive analysis of the different treatments showed that the comprehensive score for F2S was the highest ( Table 6 ).…”

“…Plant growth is adversely affected by many abiotic factors ( Luo et al, 2016 ), and alleviating such factors can effectively promote vegetative growth. Many studies have shown that improving soil fertility can promote plant growth ( Ge et al, 2019 ; Qiao et al, 2019 ; Ji et al, 2020 ). Fertilization significantly affects major plant growth indicators, including ground diameter, plant height, and biomass, among others ( Khasa et al, 2001 ; Vaario et al, 2009 ).…”

“…In this study, our results showed that TN, TP, AP, TK, and AK in the soil had a significantly positive correlation with the photosynthesis, growth, and nutrient content in the seedlings ( Figure 6B ). The compound fertilizer application to soils did great in improving the soil N, P, and TK cycling, which in turn influenced the plant nutritional status and growth ( Ge et al, 2019 ). And the N:P ratio in the soils and plants was significantly negatively correlated with the growth and nutrient of the seedlings ( Figure 6B ).…”

Changes in leaf litter decomposition of primary Korean pine forests after degradation succession into secondary broad‐leaved forests

“…Ge et al. ( 2019 ) indicated that the related transformation and decomposition features of leaf litter nutrients result in corresponding changes in soil fertility. Dent et al.…”